User talk:Phoebus Alexandros
Welcome Hi, welcome to the Wiki! Thanks for your edit to the Iron Snakes page. Please read ALL of the Important Links on the Main Page before beginning any editing activities on this wiki, as the Warhammer 40k Wiki has very strict formatting and content guidelines. Failure to follow them may lead to the immediate deletion of your work. If you have any questions or need help please contact either Lead Administrator Montonius or Associate Administrator Algrim Whitefang. Thanks, and enjoy your time here! RE: Iron Snakes Chapter Organisation Phoebus, Yes, it is true that the Iron Snakes novel doesn't make mention of either Vanguard Veterans, a First Company or Battle Companies being a part of the Chapter organisation of the Iron Snakes Chapter. However, as a Successor Chapter of the Ultramarines, one can presume that the Iron Snakes follow the sacred writings of their Primarch Roboute Guilliman, if not to the letter, at least in spirit. Nearly every Codex-Chapter follows the standard organisation as prescribed in this most holiest of times. It can be assumed that the Iron Snakes possess elite veterans (referred to as Notables) that make up a core group of Veteran Space Marines (which they do not refer to as such), since the Iron Snakes' Notables do not properly represent a pool of Veteran Space Marines as in the 1st Companies of most other Chapters. Therefore, like other Chapters, the Iron Snakes Notables more than likely make up the Chapter's Terminator-armoured elite, although it is unknown if they are deployed exclusively as a part of their own Notable Phratry Squad or are spread out amongst the various Phratry Squads of the Chapter. Thanks for pointing out my slight oversight in regards to Vanguard Veterans and Battle Companies. Hopefully this answers your questions. Algrim Whitefang (talk), Assistant Administrator Algrim, Greetings! I agree that a Codex Chapter would hold give due deference to the Codex Astartes. In that sense, what you propose is eminently sensible. My concern, though, is that the Iron Snakes are decidedly not a Codex Chapter. As the article correctly captures, the Iron Snakes focus on the ten-man Tactical Squad rather than Battle and Reserve Companies as their default tactical unit. Notable Squads are distinct from standard Squads in that they possess a higher degree of prestige, but they do not necessarily constitute a pool of Veterans. Note, for instance, that at least three of Notable Damocles' members during the events of Brothers of the Snake ''- Priad, Dyognes, and Aekon - are inducted as petitioners heading into their first assignment. Thus, while Notables may very well have Veterans within their ranks, they are also likely to have "rookies" replacing recent combat losses. More importantly, though, ''Brothers of the Snake ''qualifies the "Terminator elite" as separate from the Notables. From page 107-08: ''“He’d known and admired Khiron since his own days as a petitioner, and indeed had been intending to try for Ridates squad when Raphon called him to Damocles. The selection to one of the Chapter’s most prestigious squads, one of the Notables, had shocked and honoured him. Priad had not then recognised his own worth. Only afterwards did he discover that he was one of the top petitioners of his year and that several squad commanders had argued over him. Priad had been unusual in that he had not joined the Iron Snakes with any burning ambition for advancement. Many of the petitioners dreamed of induction into Skypio, or the Terminator elite. For Priad, it was enough just to be an Iron Snake. A place in one of the standard tactical squads like Ridates would have been more than enough for him.” There is no other reference to Terminators in Brothers of the Snake. ''Of the remaining sources cited in the article, I possess ''Codex: Eye of Terror, ''Codex: Space Marines'' (6th Edition), Insignium Astartes, ''Tactica Imperialis: A History of the Later Imperial Crusades, '' The Art of Clint Langley, ''The Sabbat Worlds Crusade, ''Salvation's Reach. I will be more than glad, if you'd like, to go through those books and see if there is any additional mention of Terminators or other Veteran formations. We can then amend the section in question as necessary. How does that sound? Cheers, Phoebus Phoebus Alexandros (talk) 01:34, December 27, 2013 (UTC)